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Amri Karbi language

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Amri Karbi
RegionAssam major in the district Kamrup, Meghalaya in the district Ri-Bhoi
EthnicityKarbi people
Native speakers
125,000 (2003)[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3ajz
Glottologamri1238

Amri Karbi, also known as Plains Karbi, Dumrali,[2] is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken in parts of the states of Assam and Meghalaya in Northeast India.[3] Amri Karbi variously treated as a variety of the Karbi language or as its own language. Amri Karbi is divided into two regional varieties: Upper Amri and Lower Amri.[2][3] It is distinct from the speech of a group also called Amri Karbi in the west of the Karbi Anglong district in Assam, who speak a Hills Karbi dialect.[2][4]

Phonology

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Consonants

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Amri has 23 phonemic consonants. Allophones or alternative pronunciations are included in parentheses in the table below.

Consonants[2]
Bilabial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Stop voiceless unaspirated p t c k
aspirated
voiced unaspirated b d ɟ g
aspirated ɟʰ
Fricative voiceless (ɸ)i s h
voiced β
Nasal m n ŋ
Lateral l
Rhotic r
Approximant (j)ii

^i Alternative realization of /pʰ/ amongst some members of the younger generation. ^ii Allophone of /ɟ/.

Vowels

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Amri Karbi has 7 vowels, 2 of which are marginal phonemes (included in parentheses in the table below). In addition, there are the diphthongs /ai/ and /ɔi/.[2]

Vowels[2]
Front Central Back
Close i u
Close-mid (e) (o)
Open-mid ɛ ɔ
Open a

Tone

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Three phonemic tones exist in Amri Karbi: low, mid, and high.[2]

Phonotactics

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The maximum syllable in Amri Karbi is (C)(C)V(V)(C). A limited number of onset clusters occur, the first element of which is a voiceless stop or the glottal fricative /h/, followed by /l/ or /r/. Depending on the speaker, clusters /hl/ and /hr/ can variably be produced as [h], [l] and [r], or [lh] and [rh]. All consonants but /ŋ/ can appear syllable-initially. The only consonants able to occur syllable-finally are nasals /m n ŋ/, liquids /l r/, and voiceless unaspirated /p t k/. The latter three are realized as unreleased [p̚ t̚ k̚] when syllable-final.[2]

Orthography

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Latin script is used for institutional practice, both Latin and Assamese script are used in various publications.[citation needed]

Locations

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Amri (Karbi) language is spoken in the following locations in India (Ethnologue).

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Amri Karbi at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed access icon
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Philippova, Nailya (2021). A Grammar of Amri Karbi (PhD thesis). Helsinki: University of Helsinki.
  3. ^ a b "Amri Karbi". Ethnologue (27 ed.). Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  4. ^ Konnerth, Linda (17 June 2014). A Grammar of Karbi (PhD thesis). University of Oregon. Archived from the original on 29 January 2025. Retrieved 29 January 2025.